Friday, January 18, 2013

Tater Tot Casserole.

I grew up with a mom who loved to cook. I remember having wonderful meals around our dinner table that included homemade breads and desserts. She still cooks this way today; unfortunately I don’t live close enough to her to enjoy these meals on a regular basis. My mom rarely made a casserole and since a lot of how I cook today was shaped by the meals my mom prepared for me growing up, I don’t make a lot of casseroles. When I do try them, usually prepared by someone else, I’m typically not a fan. So not just any casserole recipe makes the cut.

This tater tot casserole recipe is great. It’s quick, easy and very tasty. It’s easily scalable, meaning that I can make enough for just my family or make four batches at once. Any time I need to take a meal to someone, I make this casserole. It also freezes well. When I make it to take to a friend, I always make extra and freeze it in disposable pans for a quick weeknight meal.

Enjoy!

Tater Tot Casserole

1 lb lean ground beef

½ onion, chopped

Salt and pepper

2 cans cream of mushroom soup (I like to use one regular and one reduced fat)

Velveeta cheese

Tator tots (I prefer tater rounds)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a skillet, brown the ground beef and onions. Season with salt and pepper while cooking. If the ground beef is very lean, a little extra virgin olive oil may need to be added. Drain any excess fat from the cooked ground beef, if needed. Stir in cream of mushroom soup. Transfer the mixture to a baking dish. Cover the mixture with the desired amount of cheese. Then top with enough tater tots to cover the casserole. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the tater tots are brown and the cheesy is bubbly.